DOF: Lee County spring wildfire was 5th-largest in Virginia

LEE COUNTY, Va. (WJHL) – A spring fire in Southwest Virginia was among the largest in the Commonwealth, according to the Virginia Department of Forestry (DOF).

The DOF announced Thursday that its firefighters responded to 411 Virginia wildfires during the spring fire season, which runs from Feb. 15 to April 30. Combined, those fires burned almost 20,000 acres, the most in a spring fire season in the last 30 years, DOF reports.

For reference, the department compared that to the 2,174 total acres burned in spring 2023 after 330 wildfires.

A total of 29 homes and 28 structures were damaged in spring fires, according to DOF. Firefighters protected 750 homes and 400 structures while battling the wildfires.

The Moore Hollow Fire in Lee County was the fifth-largest spring wildfire in Virginia. DOF reports it burned 525 acres.

The largest spring wildfire in Virginia – by a wide margin – was the 211 West Fire in Page County. It burned 6,390 acres.

With the spring fire season over and Virginia’s 4 p.m. burning law no longer in effect, DOF continues to urge people to monitor weather and use caution when burning.

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